My Cousin Annie
by showtunediva
Summary: Events of Cousins and Holiday Memories for the perspective of Annie's cousin Kathryn Farrell.
1. When Jen Met Willie

**When Jen Met Willie**

**My Cousin Annie Prologue**

**Disclaimer: ** No rights to any characters from Annie belong to me. Jennifer Farrell and her children are Mandalicious's original characters and Jennifer's husband Willie is my own. I figured I would add a prologue to this story that goes into the back story of Jennifer and Willie's courtship, marriage and what leads up to Willie eventually abandoning his family would be a good idea. This chapter is from Jennifer's perspective… the rest of the story is from Kathryn's perspective.

I often feel so bitter toward my husband for abandoning my family. It's been simmering ever since the day he left us 11 years ago. I often wondered how things would be different if he hadn't left? Would my father have been able to talk to sense into him about being a good father before he passed away? Some questions are better off left unanswered I guess.

I met Willie my junior year at Michigan at a party for a mutual friend's birthday. He was in a band with a few of his friends and they were band for the party. During a break in their set he came over to talk to me.

"Hey, you're Sarah's friend right?"

I nodded. "I'm Jennifer, nice to meet you." He had the most captivating blue eyes.

"Nice to meet you too. What did you think of that song we just played?"

"It had a really nice beat to it."

"It's an original you know.

"Cool. I didn't know you wrote songs."

"Our band writes a lot of our own songs. Who knows I may write for you someday."

I blushed. "That's awfully nice of you."

"Well, break's over! I'll talk to you later."

"Sure, I'll talk to you later.

The next morning I called my house in Connecticut. I couldn't wait to tell my sister Grace the good news. Grace is 3 years younger than me. In the fall she'll be starting her freshmen year at Columbia. I can't believe how fast she is growing up. Our younger sister Melissa is in 9th grade. Grace picked up on the first ring.

"Hi Jenny. I miss you!"

"I miss you too Gracie. Guess what?"

"What?" My sister is never very good at guessing things.

"I met a boy!"

I could hear a squeal of excitement from Melissa in the background.

"That's exciting! Are we going to get to meet him?"

"Eventually I hope… we're not dating yet or anything."

"What's his name?"

"Willie."

"How did you meet him?"

"He's in a band that played at my friend Sarah's birthday party last night."

"What does he play?"

"Drums."

"What does he look like?"

"He's tall with blonde hair and the most stunning blue eyes."

"We're so excited for you Jenny. Are you going to bring him home over the summer?'

"Maybe."

"We can't wait until you're home for summer break Jen!"

My heart panged with longing. "I miss you two so much. The semester is only a few months longer I'll be home in mid-May."

"I love you Gracie. Tell Lissy I love her too."

"We love you too Jenny. How are your classes going?"

"Fine, how are yours? You must be so excited senior year is almost over."

"This year has been so busy. I can't wait for it to be summer!"

"Well, I have to go. I have to get ready to go to my biology lecture."

"Talk to you soon Jenny."

I hung up.

Throughout the rest of the semester Willie and I went out on a semi- consistent basis with a group of our friends. We got to know each other better as time went on and he then asked me to live in an apartment with him in the fall.

"Sure, that would be fun. Would be living together with anyone else?"

"Yeah, Sarah, Randy Megan and James."

"Sounds like a plan."

When the semester ended I went back to Connecticut and he went back to Ohio. I found myself missing him a great deal. I never knew what love at first sight really was until that moment.

In mid- July he called me on the phone and asked me if he could come visit me the week before school started and we could fly out to Michigan together.

"Sure! My family can't wait to meet you!"

I highly anticipated his arrival. I could tell that Grace and Melissa were excited to meet him too.

"When is he coming when is coming?" Grace asked.

I smiled. "Daddy is taking me to the airport to pick him up around 4:15pm."

At dinner that night it was getting to know you hour.

"So Willlie.. is that short for William?" my mother asked.

Willie nodded "Yeah. I prefer to be called Willie though Bill is too common of a nickname for William."

"Jenny said you play drums in a band! That's so cool." Grace said

"What's your band called?" Melissa asked.

"Serendipity." Willie answered

"What a cool name!" Grace said.

"So what's your major Willie?" my father asked

"Music. All my buddies and I are really creative. We're all either music, theatre or creative writing majors."

"What do you plan on doing with that degree after graduation?"

Willie shrugged. "Not really sure yet. Right now I just want to focus on getting through senior year.. not too worried about finding a job right now."

My parents exchanged a skeptical glance between them.

"Do you have any brothers or sisters?" Grace asked

Willie nodded. "I'm the youngest of two. My older brother Sam lives in Connecticut.. not too far from you guys actually. I'm in this area a lot during the holidays so Jen and I will fly back together at Christmas and Thanksgiving."

"Will we get to meet your family too?" Melissa asked.

"I sure hope so."

The semester started on August 27th. It was a very hectic semester with trying to wrap up all the credits for my major and trying to figure out my internships for the spring. I am very serious about my studies.. always have been. Willie on the other hand doesn't seem half as concerned about good grades.

One night before his band had a big concert in the next town over I noticed he hadn't even cracked opened his books to study for a big test he had on Monday.

"Shouldn't you be studying?" I asked

"This test will be a breeze. I'm not too worried about it. I'll just study in the van on the way to the show and in between sets."

I looked at him skeptically "Are you sure you'll be prepared enough?"

"I'm not too worried. I'm not so sure why you're worried. You're not the person who has this test on Monday."

I chose not to say anything more. The last thing I wanted to do was get in an argument with him.

Once the spring came things were even crazier. I had 2 classes my internship and my work study job and Willie was away every other weekend playing with the band. As the semester drew to an end and graduation approached I was excited about the future but nervous about what the future would be like living with Willie.

Two days before graduation on the senior cruise Willie took me by the hand and walked me to the side of the ship that overlooked the ocean.

" Jen, you know I've been thinking you don't always want to live in Michigan do you?"

I shook my head. "No, this town is way too small for me. There's nothing to do here."

"My buddy Gary lives in Chicago. I was thinking of giving the band up for awhile and settling down with you,… maybe starting a family."

"That's a big step Willie. Are you sure you want to get married?"

Willie nodded. "Yeah, you're the girl I want to marry Jennifer."

My heart raced. "This is all so sudden. We've only been dating for a year."

"We're not gonna get married right away. I want to find a place in Chicago first and start looking for a job. You need to look for a job too."

This all sounded very promising. I was very happy that Willie was willing to sacrifice the band for me and to start a family. I couldn't wait to tell my family about the engagement.

Once we moved to Chicago things got kind of difficult. I had no problems finding a job and got an entry level position at a dentist office as a receptionist. Willie on the other hand struggled to find work. His final grades had not turned out very well and because of this he had trouble finding work. I wanted to tell him that he should have focused more on his studies instead of partying so much but decided not to say anything.

That fall I got some news that shook the very foundation of my family. My sister Melissa called me up in tears saying that my father was diagnosed with cancer and only had six months to live.

When I hung up the phone and looked at my fiancée I burst into tears

"Don't cry sweetheart. Everything will be alright." Willie consoled

I prayed to god that he was right.

As it turned out my father didn't even make it through the Christmas holidays. He died on December 20th. I flew home a few days before that to spend my father's last days with him. I just couldn't believe we had lost the man who was the rock of our family. I decided to stay through New Years to make sure my mother would be alright. The day before I was going to fly back to Chicago I pulled my sisters aside.

"Have you two noticed that Mama looks really pale?"

My sisters nodded. "I'm not too alarmed. It could just be low blood sugar." Melissa said.

Grace didn't look too sure. "I don't know. I noticed she hasn't been eating very well lately. I hope she's not starving herself. I know she's been taking Daddy's death incredibly hard. We certainly don't want to end up losing her too."

I flew back to Chicago with a heavy heart. I was very worried my mother wasn't taking very good care of herself.

Time went on. On May 4th I got a call from Grace.

"Jenny, Grandma wants you home as soon as possible."

My heart raced. "Is anything wrong?"

There was silence.

"Gracie, sweetheart are you there?"

I could tell my sister was very upset about something. She was crying on the other end of the phone.

"Mama has been very sick Jenny. We're not sure what she has but she could die any day now."

It was my turn to be quiet. Willie came into the kitchen from grocery shopping at that moment. He noticed my somber expression right away.

"How soon can you be home Jenny?"

"Tomorrow, maybe Friday."

"Okay. I'll see you soon,"

"I love you Gracie."

"I love you too Jenny."

I hung up the phone and fell into Willie's open arms. He rocked me back and forth for fifteen minutes.

"Do you want me to come to Connecticut with you this time sweetheart? I can always stay at my brother's house, if you need time to be alone with your sisters."

"That would be excellent. Thank you darling."

"I love you Jen."

"I love you too."

When we got to Connecticut my grandmother met us at the train station.

"Hello Willie, sorry we have to see you under these circumstances."

"I'm sorry about Emily being sick Mrs. Farrell. I'll be staying at my brother's house. If you need anything just give me a call."

"Thank you dear. We appreciate that very much."

Willie kissed me as we exited the train station. "I love you sweetheart."

"I love you too."

Willie hailed a cab to his brother's house and my grandmother and I walked to her car which was on the east side of the parking lot.

"So what does Mama have exactly?" I asked

Grandma shrugged. "We don't really know what kind of disease she has. Have you noticed anything at all strange about how your mother has been acting?"

I shrugged. "I know she was really sad about Daddy's death. Gracie mentioned something awhile ago about the fact she wasn't eating a lot. Have her eating habits improved at all?"

Grandma shook her head. "Her eating habits haven't improved unfortunately. I think that's part of the problem. She probably hasn't been getting the right amount of vitamins and nutrients in her system."

My heart did a somersault in my chest. I was silent for the rest of the car ride.

When we got home Grace threw her arms around me.

"Oh Jenny, we're so happy you're home. I just can't bear to see how sick Mama is!"

"Everything will be okay Gracie."

My grandmother sat us down on the couch in the living room.

"Girls, your aunt and I have some very unhappy news to tell you."

My sisters and I held hands. We all knew what was coming.

" As you know your mother has been very ill. Her condition has gotten worse. She does not have very much longer to live."

"How much longer would you say she has?" I whispered… though I didn't really want to hear the answer.

My aunt looked at us grimly. Two months…maybe three."

"Should I not go back to school to take my summer classes?" Grace asked

"Your mom would want you to go back to school sweetheart. Even though she might be around to see you graduate take comfort in knowing that she'd be proud of you for completing your degree."

Melissa leaned her head on my shoulder. Her chest was heaving with sobs. I kissed her on the forehead softly and squeezed both of my sister's hands tightly.

Willie and I had a small wedding ceremony at the end of June at the Congregational Church in the center of town. Our honeymoon would be postponed until a later time because we weren't sure how much longer my mother was going to live.

My mother would pass away on a brisk fall day in mid-September. I had the unfortunate honors of calling Grace at school.

"Gracie, Mama died in her sleep last night."

There was silence on the other end of the phone.

"Are you there sweetheart?"

"Yes." My sister's whisper was barely audible.

"Grandma wants you to come home so we can start planning the funeral."

"Okay."

"Gracie remember you Lissy and I we'll always have each other no matter what."

"I love you Jenny."

"I love you too."

The funeral for my mother would be that Saturday. In the days leading up to the funeral my sisters aunt grandmother and I spent time cleaning out the house preparing to sell it. I was in shock that we would be selling my childhood house that was full of so many great memories.

At the services I stood between my sisters and squeezed each of their hands tightly. "I love you guys." I whispered.

Melissa returned my squeeze. "We love you too Jenny."

"Sisters forever, friends for always." Grace whispered.

My parents passed away in 1921. Three years later on March 3rd, 1924 Willie and I gave birth to our daughter Kathryn Grace. She was the most beautiful thing I had ever seen in my life. We were over the moon to have our first child. When I asked Grace to be the godmother to Kathryn she was overjoyed.

By this point I was working full time in a lawyer's office as a clerk. Willie was still struggling to find work and this was very concerning to me. I didn't want to be the soul breadwinner in our house.

"Willie, you know I think you need to be more focused on providing for our family. You don't seem to take parenting very seriously~"

"Jen, sweetheart, get off my case would you? I'll find a job. You worry too much!"

He didn't realize I had every reason in the world to be worried.

The first two years after Kathryn was born were very rough. I was almost starting to regret marrying Willie but I then thought if I hadn't I wouldn't have this beautiful baby girl In my life. Kathryn Grace was my source of joy. I was so excited to eventually have another baby.

Willie eventually found a job but he had a bit of an issue keeping steady work. I cried myself to sleep every night once Kathryn was asleep in her crib wondering what the hell I gotten myself in to.

Grace and Melissa lived two or three hours away in Boston and New York. There were times when I really wished I lived closer to them I needed them right now more than anything. Willie still had very much of the college party mentality left in him and when he wasn't working he was going out to bars and getting drunk. He would be out late at night for two sometimes three days at a time.

By this time Grace had been hired by Oliver Warbucks one of the richest men in New York City. She called me on the phone one day.

"Jenny, I'm really worried about you. Why don't you and Kathryn come stay at the mansion for a couple days? You seem to be very stressed out."

"Your boss wouldn't think we're intruding?"

"Of course not. There's plenty of space here!"

"How long can we stay for? I think you could really use the change of scenery."

At that point I started to second guess myself.

"Coming to New York by myself with a baby could be too much of a hassle."

"I never considered that before. I'll ask Mr. Warbucks if I can take a few days off to come visit you then."

"Okay, when can you come visit?"

"Thursday- Sunday."

"Okay, great. I can't wait to see you."

"I love you Jenny."

"I love you too Gracie."

The cab from the airport dropped off Grace around 3:00 on Thursday afternoon.

"Auntie Grace!" Kathryn said running to greet her aunt.

Grace swept Kathryn up into her arms. "Hello, my sweet little girl!"

I entered the hallway behind my daughter and kissed my sister.

"Thanks for coming to stay Gracie. I hope Mr. Warbucks won't mind too much."

"He won't. He gave me some work to take with me so I won't fall too behind."

" Auntie Grace, can we go to the zoo to see the penguins?"

Grace nodded her head. "Of course sweetheart!"

"I love you!" Kathryn nuzzled into Grace's neck.

"I love you too Kathryn Grace."

We started cooking dinner. Willie got home from work around 5:30.

"Hello Grace."

"Hello Willie, dinner will be in about 20 minutes."

"Can't stay. Going out with co-workers tonight." Willie kissed me and then Kathryn and then ran upstairs to get changed out of his work clothes.

Kathryn looked sad.

"Daddy never has dinner with us on Thursdays. Always goes out with friends."

'Always gets wasted and comes home drunk at 1 in the morning.' I silently added to myself.

Grace, Kathryn and I ate dinner together in silence. Kathryn was in part time pre school in the morning so she was usually in bed by 8:30. Grace tucked her into bed that night.

" Auntie Grace will you read me a story?"

Grace nodded. "Of course darling."

Kathryn snuggled under her covers and they read a story together.

" Auntie Grace, will Daddy wake me up to kiss me goodnight when he comes home?"

"I'm sure he will precious.. .Grace leaned over and kissed my daughter on the forehead. I came in a few minutes

"Good night Auntie Grace."

"Good night angel."

Good night Mama. I love you!"

"I love you too baby girl."

I shut the door behind me and Grace followed me back downstairs to the kitchen.

"Kathryn seems to be well aware of her father's night time activities." Grace was shocked.

I nodded as I put some tea on for both of us. "We have a routine these days I suppose."

"Jenny, this type of situation can not possibly be healthy for the two of you. Has he ever been abusive?"

"No. Do you think it's possible that could happen?"

"I'm not going to rule it out."

"I can't divorce him Gracie. We promised each other we'd be with each other for better or for worse. Right now I'd say he's at his worst."

"I'm not saying you should divorce him. I just want you to be careful. The minute he starts to become violent I want you to come stay with me at the mansion… or call Melissa and go stay with her."

I had tears in my eyes.

"He told me before we graduated that he was so excited about becoming a father. Now I can't even tell how serious he is about being a parent. Sometimes I wonder if he even cares about our child."

"Jenny, don't even talk like that! Willie loves you and Kathryn very much. He just needs to get some sense in his head."

"Daddy could sure talk some sense into him if he was still here."

Grace shook her head. "I'm not sure about that. Remember when he first came over the house for dinner?"

I nodded. "Did he say anything to you afterward?"

Grace had tears in her eyes.

"He said he wasn't sure if Willie was a good match for you Jenny. He thought you could do a lot better than a slacker like him."

My heart fell in my chest. "He honestly said that?"

Grace nodded her head.

I burst into tears. "You know what Grace, I think Daddy was right about Willie. I really wish he'd wise up and show some maturity. I want to be able to trust him as family man and a good role model for our child."

Grace looked at me, fighting back tears of her own.

"Talk to him Jenny. You absolutely have to! If you don't want to have a miserable marriage you have to work things out with him."

Grace stood up pulled me to my feet and into her arms

"Everything will be okay Jenny. Please don't be sad."

"I love you Gracie. "

"I love you too."

Grace went to sleep in the guest bedroom and I went to sleep alone in the bed I shared Willie. Something that had become very common. I decided that Grace was right, I needed to have a serious conversation with Willie if we were going to have any kind of long lasting relationship.

I was jolted awake at 2:00am by flashing lights outside my window. I was shocked to see two police cars in my driveway. I pulled on my robe and slippers and went downstairs.

"Are you Jennifer Farrell?" the cop asked"

"Yes, I am. What's going on?"

"We have your husband in custody. He was part of a fight in a bar downtown. Got beat up bad too. He was very intoxicated. He tried to drive himself home but we had to take away the keys."

"Did you want me to come to the station pick him up?"

The cop nodded.

"I went upstairs to go put some clothes on. Kathryn was woken up by the noise.

"Mama, what's going on?"

"Daddy got in a fight. I'm going with some nice officers to get him at the police station. Go back to sleep sweetie pie. Aunt Grace is in the guest room.. Go lay down with her."

"I want to go with you Mama!" Kathryn looked very upset.

My three year old daughter did not have the capacity to understand the weight of the trouble her father was in. I did not want her to see him in a drunken stupor.

"Come with Mama Sweetheart. I'm going to take you to the guest room so you can lie down with Aunt Grace."

"NO! I want to go see Daddy!"

I was at a loss for what to do.

Grace was in the door way within five minutes

"What's going on Jenny? It's 2:30am."

"Kathryn, wait here for a second. I need to talk to Aunt Grace."

"Okay Mama"

Grace and I stepped out in the hallway.

"Willie got into a confrontation at the bar Gracie. The cops arrested him. I have to go to the police station to pick him up."

"Does Kathryn want to go with you?"

I nodded " I don't want her to see him in that kind of state Gracie. Will you stay with her and get her to go back to sleep? She has school at 8:15."

Grace nodded. "I'll take her in my room and read her another bedtime story."

Grace went back into my room. "Katie sweetheart let's go read another bedtime story. You'll see Daddy tomorrow."

"Okay Auntie Grace."

"Kiss mama goodbye."

"I'll see you a little later on sweetheart." Kathryn kissed my cheek.

"Tell Daddy I love him Mama."

My heart was breaking. "I will princess."

I went back outside, got in my car and followed the cop car down the driveway. I was very upset with Willie for getting me out of bed at 2:00 in the morning.

Willie was grinning at me when I came to pick him up.

"Missed a hell of a fight Jen. Wish you'd been there."

" Can't say a bar where grown men are fighting like second graders is a place I really want to be." I replied.

I signed his release papers. ""When can I come pick up the car?"

"Any time tomorrow afternoon."

"Okay."

I led Willie out to the car.

"You complete moron!" I screamed once we were in the car driving home.

"What did I do?"

"Is this what you do every night when you go on your drinking binges?"

"I don't get into fights like that one. That was a really big doozy."

"Willie, did you know Kathryn wanted to come with me to pick you up?"

"Where is she?"

"At home with Grace. I didn't want her to see you in this sorry state."

"What sorry state?"

"You honesty want our three year old daughter to see you drunk off your ass?"

"Problem?"

I sighed. "Willie, we're not in college anymore. You can't just go off to whatever bar you want to and get drunk."

"Where's your sense of adventure Jenny? Are you going to be a boring old housewife now?"

I was coming so close to slapping him in the face or getting out of the car and walking the rest of the way home.

"I intend to have some fun in my life… with our daughter… taking her to the beach….. taking her to the playground.. taking her to carnivals. Don't you want to be involved it that too?"

"Of course I do. I love Katie Bear."

"Then wise up. I'm warning you right now Willie if you continue to act like this I'm not going to stick around forever!"

"What happened to for better or for worse?"

"This is certainly your worst. I am hoping you will change."

We were silent for the remainder of the car ride. I was mentally exhausted but couldn't sleep once we both got to bed.

I woke up at 7:25 to help Kathryn get ready for school.

"Where's Daddy Mama?"

"Still sleeping sweetheart. He'll be awake when you get home from school."

"Won't he be working?"

Grace and I looked at each other.

"He's staying home today darling. He's not feeling too well." Grace said.

"When I'm sick Mama makes me chicken soup."

I gave Grace a look that said ' How the hell do you explain a hangover to a three year old?'

"Come on Katie. Auntie Grace is going to take you to school." Grace said.

"Are we going to the zoo after school today Auntie Grace?" Kathryn asked.

"Tomorrow darling. I'm taking you to the Children's Museum today after school."

"Hooray!"

Kathryn kissed me goodbye. "I love you Mama."

"I love you too baby girl. Have fun at school today."

Grace was back in 20 minutes with a box of muffins from the bakery.

"How long do you think it will take your husband to recover from his hangover?"

I shrugged. "No idea. He's supposed to go to work at 11:15. I don't know if that's going to happen or not"

"We have to go the police station to get his car right?"

I nodded. "We can do that after we finish eating."

"Okay."

After we returned from getting Willie's car at the police station Willie was there to greet us in the kitchen.

"Morning ladies." He said looking at me smugly.

Grace had fire in her eyes.

"You listen to me Willie You're acting like a hooligan. I have every right to have Jen and Kathryn come back to New York with me and stay at the mansion."

Willie's jaw dropped "We can't have Kathryn missing school Grace."

"She's in pre-school. I don't think she'll be missing too much if she misses two or three days of school. Her teachers are well away about what's been going on in this house."

"Oh, really?"

"Yes, really!"

"Gracie, calm down!" I said

'He's my husband, let me yell at him.' I added to myself.

"I will not be calm Jennifer! Willie, you don't even realize what kind of stress and anxiety your wife has been under while you're off on your wild and crazy adventures. Do you still think you're in college or high school?"

"Not really."

Before my sister could rant and rave anymore I jumped in

"Willie, Grace is right. My nerves have been on edge for the past few weeks. I don't know what to expect from you. I don't want our daughter to be subjected to your outlandish behavior."

"I haven't hurt either of you yet Jennifer and I never plan to."

"You may not hurt us physically but you hurt us emotionally when you disappear for days at a time or go out late nights and get drunk."

I sighed. "Willie I'm leaving on Sunday afternoon to spend time at Grace's for a few days. I'lll be back on Wednesday. You need some time alone to think about how you've been treating us."

"I haven't done anything wrong!"

"You actually have no idea how much you've done wrong."

Two years later two weeks after Kathryn turned five I gave birth to our second child. On March 25th 1925 Jacob Adam Farrell was bought into the world. Willie was delighted to have a son. "I promise I'll change Jen. I want to be here for both our kids." He promised at my hospital bedside the day Jacob was born.

Kathryn was so happy to have a little brother. She was constantly asking me what she could do to help take care of Jacob and did whatever she could to help. I was so proud of her for stepping up to help. Lord knows… the way Willie was acting I doubt he was going to be much help.

Things were fine for the first two months after Jacob was born. Willie seemed to be getting more steady out of work and staying out of fights at the bar. In May Kathryn graduated from Kindergarden. Grace and Melissa came up for the weekend to visit us and spend time with the baby. Willie was there for most of the weekend. then on Sunday night for the first time in several months he went to a bar to watch a baseball game on TV. He came home incredibly drunk and was throwing things around.

"Daddy STOP! Jacob is sleeping." Kathryn said.

"I'll do what I want." Willie hissed.

Kathryn ran from the room in tears.

"What the fuck Willie? Seriously!" I said.

Willie all of sudden retaliated and slapped me in the face.

I almost fell against the railing.

"You fucking bastard!" I screamed.

With that Jacob woke up

"See what you did." I hissed.

"You did that with all your screaming!" He said. I went up the stairs heading for Jacob's room and the bathroom to put some cream on my swollen cheek.

Grace came out of Kathryn's room and was enraged when she saw the bruise on my cheek.

"That good for nothing bastard! I knew he'd do this to you eventually."

"Grace, please don't go down there. He's very intoxicated. I don't want him to hurt you too."

Kathryn came out of her room. "Auntie Grace did Daddy hit Mommy?"

Grace nodded sadly. "Yes, he did sweetheart."

Kathryn started to cry.

Grace picked my daughter up and took her into her room. I went into the nursery to put Jacob back to sleep.

I went into my bedroom after Jacob was back to sleep. Luckily Willie had fallen asleep on the couch so I was in the bed alone. I heard the door to my room creak open.

"Mommy?"

Kathryn was standing in the doorway.

"Come her darling."

Kathryn climbed into bed next to me and snuggled down under the covers. She touched my check where the bruise was still tender.

Mommy, did Daddy mean to do that?"

"No baby girl. He was very angry. It was an accident."

"He loves you right?

I started to cry. "Yes baby. He loves you too matter how drunk or how angry he gets."

Auntie Grace is very mad at Daddy too."

I nodded. "Yes, sweetie. Things will be better in the morning I promise."

"I love you Mommy."

"I love you too Princess."

We slept in until 9:30 the next morning. Grace was supposed to leave to go back to New York at 4pm.

Willie was not on the couch. His car was not in the driveway either.

'He must have already left for work' I thought to myself.

Grace came into the living room from the kitchen. She looked shoclked.

"I found this note on the table. It appears to be from Willie."

I braced myself against the door frame of the kitchen.. The note was brief.

Jen Please know I will always love you and the children. I have decided to leave Chicago for the time being. I am not sure when I will return. I will send child support money when I am able to.

My life changed forever that Monday morning.


	2. Introduction

**My Cousin Annie**

Events of Cousins and Holiday Memories from Kathryn Farrell's perspectives

**Chapter 1 Introduction**

Note: No characters from Annie belong to me. Grace's sisters and their children are Mandalicious's original characters. Happy New Year Fellow Fan Fiction Writers!

Hi! I'm Kathryn Farrell, Katie for short. I'm 12 years old and live in Chicago with my mom Jennifer and my younger brother Jacob who is seven. My father abandoned us when I was t five and Jacob was barely three months old. We haven't heard from him ever since. I really admire my mom a lot for how strong she is. She has really done a good job raising my brother and me. I love her so much!

My mom has two younger sisters Grace and Melissa. Aunt Grace is my godmother. Grace is my middle name after her. We don't get to see them very often.. Maybe once or twice a year. Aunt Grace lives in New York City. She never had any children of her own but she recently married Oliver Warbucks… the richest man in New York! I love visiting my Aunt Grace! Their house is so big. Aunt Grace and Uncle Oliver adopted two girls from the 14th Street Girls Orphanage. Their names are Annie and Molly. Molly is 10 and Annie is a year and a half older than me. We get along so well. Annie is almost like the sister I never had. My aunt Melissa lives in Boston with my uncle Alex and my cousin Christopher who is five years old.

Annie and Molly came to visit at the end of July. I was so excited that they were coming to visit. We went to New York in June for Annie's 8th grade graduation party. It was such a fun party. I met the rest of Annie and Molly's cousins on Uncle Oliver's side as well as the children of Annie birth father's brother Margaret and Larry. They are all very nice and we are all so close in age. It's so fabulous. I also met Annie and Molly's friends from the orphanage who equally as nice.

When Annie and Molly came to visit they arrived around mid afternoon at O'Hare Airport Jake stayed over at a friend's house for the weekend so it was just us girls. Annie was so happy to see us. Molly seemed a little shy. When I asked Annie why Molly was so quiet she said she'd never stayed away for a long period of time from Uncle Oliver and Aunt Grace. I reached out and put my arm around her. "Don't worry Molly, we're going to have such a fun weekend!"

And what a fun weekend we did have. We went shopping, to the zoo and to the Shedd Aquarium! Molly seemed to let go of her nervousness of being away from Aunt Grace and Uncle Oliver and she ended up having a good time.

Monday afternoon we took Molly and Annie to the airport around quarter of 12 Their flight was at 2:00. We helped them to unload their suitcases from the trunk and then hugged them good bye.

"This was such a fun weekend. We can't wait to see you guys at Thanksgiving!" Annie said.

"I know I can't wait either!" I said

Mom gave Annie a hug. "I'm glad you had such a good time this weekend sweetheart. We'll see you soon okay?"

Annie returned Mom's hug. "We love you Aunt Jen."

"I love you girls too."

Once Annie and Molly went through the double doors of the airport I let out a sigh.

"What's on your mind honey?" Mom asked.

"I just wish we lived closer to Annie and Molly. It would be great if we got see them more often."

Mom gave me a squeeze. "I know Katie. It's so hard that we live so far apart from everyone else. I am hoping sometime in the near future we'll move to either Boston or New York."


	3. The Surprise Party

**The Surprise Party**

**My Cousin Annie Chapter 2**

The day before Halloween Annie called me up on the phone. As she normally did, she sounded really excited about something.

"Do you think you could come a few days before Thanksgiving?" she asked me.

My mom was getting ready to make dinner. I caught her looking at me out of the corner of her eye.

'Ask her what for?" she mouthed.

"Maybe. What for? "I asked

I could see Annie smiling through the phone and I was wondering if my Aunt Grace was also listening in on the conversation on the other end.

"Mom says I can plan a surprise birthday party for Molly and I need your help getting stuff together for it. Isabella and Margaret are also in on the plan."

"Sounds like fun. Is your mom there with you? My mom wants to talk to her real quick."

"Yup Hang on!"

My mom wiped her hands on her apron and took the phone out of my hands.

"Hi Gracie, I see Annie is planning a surprise party for Molly. When do you want Kathryn to come?"

I saw Mom nod her head. " I think we definitely be able to work something out. I'll talk to Lissy and see if me and Jacob can stay with her for a few days while Kathryn is with you guys."

Mom nodded her head again. " Okay. I'll put Kathryn back on so she can talk to Annie." She handed the phone back to me.

"You'll come two days before Thanksgiving. We can have a big two day sleepover!" Annie said.

"When are you planning to have Molly's party?"

"The 23rd. I haven't seen you since July though so I figured you could come a few days early so we can catch up."

"Sounds like a plan to me."

"Great. I can't wait to see you!" I put the phone back in the receiver.

Mom closed the oven door. She had just put in the salmon.

"Katie, honey will you help me make salad?"

I nodded.

I got out the cutting board and started to chop celery and carrots.

Mom smiled at me.

"It's so nice that Annie is planning a surprise party for Molly and that she wants you Isabella and Margaret involved in the planning."

I grinned back. "It's going to such a fun party. I really got along well with Isabella and Margaret at Annie's graduation party in the summer so I can't wait to see them again."

Mom squeezed my shoulder. "I'm so glad you get along so well with Molly and Annie. I hope the three of you continue to remain close throughout the years."

"We definitely will. I love you Mommy."

Mom kissed me on the head. "I love you too my beautiful Kathryn Grace."

We flew out of O'Hare for Logan Airport at noon on November 21st. Aunt Grace was staying over at Aunt Melissa's and would take me back to New York from Boston. Uncle Alex met us at the airport and we drove back to the apartment.

"How is school sweetheart?" Uncle Alex asked me.

"Fine. I really like all my teachers. Math is probably my hardest subject. English and Science are my easiest."

"Well if you ever need help with any science homework I'm your man."

I smiled. "Thanks Uncle Alex." Jacob was asleep next to Mom. He didn't like having to get up so early to go to the airport.

Once we got to the apartment Christopher ran to greet us. "Hi Aunt Jen! Hi Katie! Hi Jake! Dinner is pretty much ready."

Mom bent down to kiss Chris on the forehead. "Hi darling! I've missed you so much. Let's go see what your mom and Aunt Grace have been cooking for dinner."

We followed Christopher down the hallway to the kitchen. Annie had come with Aunt Grace. She ran to greet us.

"Hi Guys! We're having lasagna garlic bread and salad for dinner. It's never smelled so good in here!"

Mom smiled and walked over to hug Aunt Grace who was making the salad. "It smells lovely in here."

Aunt Grace grinned and kissed Mom on the cheek. "Doesn't it?" "Annie has been talking non stop for weeks about the party for Molly. She's looking forward to having the girls over."

Annie ran over to me and gave me a hug. "Katie, we're going to have so much fun. Isabella and Margaret are coming over at 3:00 on Wednesday. The party for Molly will start at 6. Molly can't wait to see you."

I returned Annie's squeeze. "I agree. It's definitely going to be a fun party! I can't wait to see Bella and Margaret again. I haven't seen them since your graduation party in June."

We sat down to dinner soon after that. Annie and Aunt Grace were taking me back to New York on the 6:45pm train.

"Bye sweetheart. Be good for Uncle Oliver and Aunt Grace. We'll see you on Thursday." Mom gave me a hug and I grabbed my suitcase and headed back out to the car. Uncle Alex was taking us to the train station.

It had been quite the long day of travel for me. I slept for pretty much the whole train ride home. Annie had to shake me awake.

"Katie, we're at Grand Central. Come on. Daddy and Molly are waiting for us!"

I rubbed my eyes, got up out of my seat and grabbed my suitcase from the overhead compartment. As soon as we got off the train Molly ran to me.

"Hi Katie!"

"Hi Molly. We're going to have such a fun couple days together. Come on let's head to the car."

Mrs. Pugh was also with Uncle Oliver. " I made some delicious apple pie for you all for dessert." She said.

"Oh boy oh boy! That's my favorite Grandma Helen." Annie said.

Uncle Oliver took my suitcase from me and we headed to the car. Mrs. Pugh sat with Uncle Oliver in the front seat. Aunt Grace sat with us girls in the backseat. I snuggled up against her.

"I love you Aunt Grace." I whispered.

Aunt Grace kissed me on the forehead. "I love you too baby girl. I'm glad you're staying with us for a extra few days."

"Me too. We're going to have so much fun."

On Wednesday around ten minutes to three the doorbell rang. Annie and I were in the movie room sorting through the decorations.

"Miss Warbucks and Miss Bennett are here Miss Annie. " Drake said.

Annie's grin grew wide. "Tell them we're in here Drake."

"Certainly Miss."

Moments later Isabella and Margaret burst through the door to the movie room.

"Hi Annie. Hi Katie." They chorused.

I ran to them and hugged them tightly! "I haven't seen you guys since June!"

"We're so happy you could help us with the party for Molly." Bella said.

I smiled. "Annie and Molly are my favorite cousins. I'd do anything for them!"

Annie came over to us. "Okay ladies. We have lots of work to do so let's get to it."

We nodded. "Where should we start?" I asked.

"Well you can start with hanging these balloons on the edge of the movie seats."

"Should I see if I can find a few step stools so we can hang the streamers up?." Bella asked.

Annie nodded. "Sure. I'm going to pick out some movies we can all watch later on and set them aside then Margaret you and I will hang up the "Happy Birthday." Banner

We nodded. Within an hour and 15 minutes the movie room was all decorated for the party. The presents sat on the back table waiting to be opened."

At 6:00 dinner was served… Molly's favorite Spaghetti and Meatballs. Aunt Grace smiled at Annie from her place at the table and mouthed 'Is everything ready to go?" Annie gave her a thumbs up. Molly looked confused. She tapped me on the shoulder. "What's going on?" she whispered.

"You'll see." I said.

When we finished eating and our table spaces were cleared we all gathered by the door to the dining room.

"Molly, come here. We have a surprise for you." Annie said.

"Really, what is it?

Aunt Grace smiled. "If she told you it would not be a surprise."

"Come with us to the movie room!" Bella said excitedly.

"Okay."

When we left the dining room Annie proceeded to cover Molly's eyes.

"Hey! What are you doing? I can't see!" Molly protested.

"I'll uncover your eyes when we get to the movie room."

Once we got the movie room Annie uncovered Molly's eyes.

"Surprise!" We all said in unison.

Molly's jaw dropped.

Aunt Grace and Mrs. Pugh followed behind moments later with the dessert, plates cups and lemonade. Once everything was set down on the back table she scooped Molly up in her arms.

"What do you think of this party your sister and cousins planned for you?" she asked.

"It's great Mommy! What are we going to do?" Molly asked

Annie and I grinned at her and answered her in unison. "Watch movies after we eat cake."

"Really? Oh boy. What a fun party. Thanks you guys!"

Aunt Grace kissed Molly on the forehead. "I love you sweetheart. Happy 11th Birthday!"

"I love you too Mommy, let's eat dessert now!"

After we had dessert and opened presents Aunt Grace patted me on the shoulder.

"We're going to leave you girls alone now. I'll be in to check on you before you go to sleep. Have fun!"

I grinned. "We will Aunt Grace."


	4. News of A Diagnosis

**News of a diagnosis**

**My Cousin Annie Chapter 3**

**Note:** This takes place in the scence in Overcoming Obstacles where Grace calls her sister about Molly's dyslexia diagnosis.. this is Kathryn's reaction to that news. **Ages:** Annie 10; Kathryn 8; Molly 6; Jacob 5. In all other chapters Molly is 10 Annie is 14, Kathryn is 12, Jacob is 7

One day in mid-September Aunt Grace called Mom on the phone. From what is sounded like she seemed upset… I tugged at Mom's sleeve. "What's wrong?" I looked at her, worried.

Mom patted me on the head. "Go wait for me in the parlor. I need to talk to your Aunt Grace for a few minutes."

"Okay." I grabbed my math workbook and a pencil . I didn't know how long she'd be so I figured I would work on my math homework while I waited for her to get off the phone.

10 minutes later Mom joined me on the couch.

"What's wrong Mommy? Why did Aunt Grace sound so scared on the phone?"

Mom looked me straight in the eye. I knew that look meant business.

"Kathryn, your aunt told me that Molly has been diagnosed with dyslexia."

I looked at her, confused. "What's that?"

"It's a learning disability that makes her have trouble with her reading and writing."

"Is she going to be okay?"  
"I hope so. She's going to need as much help from us as possible though."

I nodded. " Annie and I will definitely help her with her reading."

Mom kissed my forehead. "That's wonderful. I love you Katie."

"I love you too Mommy."

We flew to New York a few days before Thanksgiving. Mom wanted to spend some time with Aunt Grace and get some Christmas shopping done. When we arrived Annie came to the door to greet us.

"Hi Aunt Jen! Hi Katie! Hi Jake! I'll take your bags upstairs for you!"

Jake and I followed Annie up to our rooms. Aunt Grace had just entered the foyer so her and mom started to talk.

"How's Molly been doing?" I asked

Annie looked kind of sad.

"Ever since she was diagnosed in September she's really been struggling with a lot of things. Not just her reading and writing but also her self-esteem. She's been bullied a lot."

My jaw dropped. "Oh! Poor Molly. I feel so bad. Sounds like she needs cheering up"

"She definitely does. Mom said we should all take her to the movies tonight and let her pick the movie."

Jake nodded. "That sounds like a great idea Annie."

"Kids! Lunch is ready!" Uncle Oliver called.

"Coming Daddy!"

We put our bags away and headed downstairs. Molly was already sitting at the table. She smiled when she s us.

"Hi Katie! Hi Jake!"

"Hey Molly!" We both replied.

"Hey Molly, how about we all go the movies tonight? You can pick the movie!" Annie suggested

Molly smiled. "Sure! That sounds like fun."

Aunt Grace smiled. "Your aunt and I need to do some Christmas shopping this afternoon. How about we go at about 6:30?

Annie nodded. "Sounds like a plan Mom."

After lunch we went to Molly's room to help her with her reading. I noticed that she seemed to be struggling with certain words.

I put my arm around her. " Don't worry Molly. I know this is frusturating for you but you're going to get through it. We're all here for you."

Molly smiled at me. "Thanks Katie. You're such a great cousin. I love you!"

"I love you too kiddo." I kissed her forehead.

Aunt Grace stood in the doorway. "Annie, your Aunt Jen and I are leaving to go shopping now. We'll be back in an hour or so."

"Okay Mom."

The hour went by so fast that we didn't even realize that they were gone. We helped Moly with her reading pretty much the whole time.

"Molly do you know what movie you want to see?" I asked

"Nope I'll pick one when we get to the Roxy."

"Okay."

We had a really nice night at the movies.. I think Molly seemed really happy to have her mind of being bullied which I was really happy for.


	5. New Family Members

**New Family Members **

**My Cousin Annie Chapter 5**

Chapter 3 of **Cousins from Kathryn's perspective**

What a crazy holiday it was this Christmas. We went to Aunt Grace and Uncle Oliver's house and there were some new people there I've never met before. Mrs. Pugh invited her family… she is pretty much Aunt Grace's mother since her mother died when she was 21 so I guess that makes her my grandmother.. still trying to figure out in my head how exactly that works. Anyway Mrs. Pugh has two sons and a daughter. Her oldest son Billy has one little boy who is 7 years old,,, exactly Jacob's age! They get along so well and I am so glad. Chris and Jacob get along fine but it's great that Jacob finally has someone in our family his own age even if the Pughs are not blood relatives. Mrs. Pugh's daughter has one daughter who is nine years old. Her name is Marie and she's so sweet. She was a little shy at first but she seemed to hit it off well with Molly's birth sister Patricia who is a year younger than her.

We got to Aunt Grace and Uncle Oliver's a few days before Christmas so I had a little bit of time to catch up with my cousins before the whole gang came over for Christmas. At that point Molly told me about her birth sister.

"It's just so weird to know that my mom and dad had another kid after I was adopted. It's like they had a whole other life without me."

"Well, you've had a whole other life without them." I pointed out.

Molly nodded. "I know and I wouldn't trade this family for anything in the world, trust me. It's just hard to get used to the fact that I have a little sister.. I was always used to being Annie's little sister."

"Do you think I will like her?"

Molly nodded. "Oh, definitely Katie. We're going to have so much fun on Christmas when all the family is here. I just hope it's not too overwhelming for her. It's the first time she'll be meeting everyone."

Annie squeezed Molly's shoulder. "She'll be fine kiddo. Don't you worry."

Molly threw her arms around our shoulders pulling us into a strong hug. "I love the two of you very much." She whispered.

"We love you too Molly." I said leaning over and kissing her cheek.

Christmas day the three of us were up early to help Mom, Aunt Grace and Mrs. Pugh prepare Christmas dinner,

"Mom what time is everyone else coming over?"

"Around 2:00 Annie." Aunt Grace said.

"Oh boy, I can't wait!"

Aunt Grace kissed Annie on the head. "Katie honey, did Molly tell you her birth parents were coming over for dinner?"

I nodded. "Yes Aunt Grace. I can't wait to meet them. Are they nice people?"

"Yes sweetheart very nice. I think you will really like their daughter Patricia, she's a sweetheart. She's very shy though."

"Don't worry Aunt Grace; we'll all make her feel welcome."

Aunt Grace kissed me on the forehead. "I love you my sweet Kathryn Grace."

"I love you too Aunt Grace."

Everyone started arriving around 1:30. Isabella's family was the first to come. Bella's face lit up when she saw me.

"Katie! It's so good to see you!"

I hugged her tightly. "It's so great to see you too. We wish we got to see you guys more often."

Molly's birth parents arrived next.

"Hello Nicole and Robert." Aunt Grace greeted

"Hello Grace Merry Christmas."

"Patricia, this Is my niece Kathryn she's a couple years younger than Annie."

"Hi." Patricia whispered

I smiled at her. "You don't need to be shy around me, we're family. Come on! Molly can't wait to see you!"

I took Patricia's hand and went to the kitchen where Molly and Annie were helping Mrs. Pugh getting things ready to serve.

"Hi Tricia!" Molly said running over to hug her sister.

"Hi! Merry Christmas!" Patricia responded

"What did you get from Santa?" Annie asked

"Some art supplies and some books and some clothes."

"Cool! Molly has a gift for you it's under the tree. You can open it after dinner."

Patricia's face lit up. "Oh boy oh boy! I can't wait to see what it is!"

Once everyone arrived and we sat down to dinner we immediately started to catch up with each other about how school was going and what going on in our lives. Harry Marie and Patrica were shy at first but eventually t hey jumped right in to conversation. Aunt Grace smiled at me from her spot at the adult table next to Uncle Oliver. I smiled at her and gave her a thumbs up.

After dinner we all exchanged gifts with eachother. I got some pretty cool things from Isabella and Margaret. I am so happy to have such a huge extended family. I'm sure wherever my dad is he'd be really happy with how our family turned out. I just wish we knew where he was and if he's even still alive.


	6. Our New Cousins

**Our New Cousins**

**My Cousin Annie Chapter 5**

**Epilogue of Forever Changed from Kathryn's perspective**

Kind of fudged this one a little bit since Isabella and Margaret don't technically appear till Cousins… for the most part this story is pretty consistent with the rest of my Annie stories. Frederick and Joanne are my original characters as are the brother of Jen Farrell's husband (who we may possibly meet later on in New Beginnings ) and his wife. Jennifer Kathryn and Jacob Farrell are Mandalicious's original characters. I own no Annie characters.

Aunt Grace just called Mom on the phone. She looked so excited through out the conversation. One of the last times Aunt Grace called Mom she was devastated about Molly's dyslexia diagnosis. This time when she hung up the phone she turned to my brother and I with a wide smile on her face.

"Kids, I have very exciting news."

"What is it?" Jake asked.

"Your Aunt Grace is pregnant."

"Pregnant?! Wow, really that's exciting!" I leapt up from my seat at the table and threw my arms around my mom.

Mom kissed me on my head. "Yes, it's very exciting.. and what's even better is she's pregnant with twins."

"So we're going to have two little cousins?" Jake asked.

"That's right."

I sighed.

Mom looked at me, knowing instantly what was on my mind. "You wish we lived closer to Annie don't you sweetheart?"

I looked at my brother. " We both do." I said and he nodded in agreement.

"Well maybe in a few years we'll consider moving to New York. I agree with you both. Seeing them once or twice a year is never enough. I definitely want to see them more often.. especially once the babies are born."

"That would be great."

After dinner the phone rang. It was Annie for me.

"Did your mom tell you Mom's pregnant with twins?"

"Yes. I can't wait til they're born , Annie. This is so exciting."

Annie's infectious excitement bubbled over the phone line. "I know! The preparations are going to be so much fun. Grandma Helen is taking me and Molly shopping tomorrow for stuff for the nursery."

"Have you guys thought about names yet?"

"No, not really. What names do you really like?"

"Hmm… that's a good question. I don't really know. If I was having a baby I guess I would name the girl Samantha and the boy James. What about you?"

"I think we might name the boy Frederick after Daddy's brother who died but I am not sure yet. As far as girls names go.. my mom's middle name is pretty. I also like Joanne. I also like Samantha like you do."

"I miss you Katie. I wish you lived closer to us."

I smiled. I loved how Annie and I had exact same thoughts.

"I know! Mom was saying how she's hoping in the next couple years we will move to either Boston or New York… not sure when. I really wish we saw you guys more often."

"Maybe we can come visit after the babies are born?"

"Well, you're coming for Thanksgiving aren't you?"

"No, we're going to Daddy's side of the family for Thanksgiving this year."

"Has anyone been in touch with your dad?"

"You know, it's kind of funny. We ask every year if anyone has heard from him but the answer is always the same … No."

"Isn't that a little awkward?"

"Sometimes. I really wish I knew more about him and the reason why he left us."

"You never know? You could find out sooner or later. I mean look at how me and Daddy found his brothers and sisters."

I smiled. " I'm so happy that the three of us are so close to Bella and Margaret. I've grown so close to them in the past couple years."

"Just keep thinking positive. You never know if your dad could turn up somewhere. He may even show up in the most mysterious of places."

I had no idea what she meant by that but it made me wonder if my dad would ever consider tracking us down If we ever moved to Boston. I had never considered that before but waved the thought away. If he never felt inclined to keep in touch with us all this time why would he start now?

"Hopefully, we'll come see the babies for Christmas."

"You should come early like you did last year. That way we can spend more time with you."

"Okay."

Days weeks and months passed . At the end of September Mrs. Pugh called my mom early in the morning on a Saturday. It was a short phone call. When my mom hung up she was smiling.

"That was Helen Pugh Your Aunt Grace in in labor! The babies should be coming any time now.

I suspected Annie would be calling me later on that day with the news of the babies and what they looked like. At around 1:00pm the phone rang again.. it was Annie.

"Katie Katie! Mom had the babies this morning at 9:15."

I smiled. Annie's excitement about anything is very infectious. "What did Aunt Grace and Uncle Oliver end up deciding on for names?"

"The girl's name is Joanne Rachel Warbucks. Her middle name is named after her mom who died when she was 21.. my grandma Rachel. The boy's name is Frederick Oliver. He's named after Daddy's brother who died… just like I told you!"

"They must be so cute!"

"They are. They're so tiny too. I can't wait for you to meet them at Christmas."

"Is your mom home yet?"

"No, her and the babies are coming home tomorrow."

"I can't wait to meet them at Christmas."

I hung up the phone, excited that my new cousins had finally arrived.

At Thanksgiving time we went to Connecticut to see my dad's brother Samuel and his wife Robin.

"Kathryn, I can't believe how big you're getting!" My aunt Robin gave me a hug.

"It's so nice to see you Aunt Robin."

"It's always nice to see you and your brother too sweetheart. "

All the cousins on my dad's side of the family are older than me and Jake…. Most of them are in high school or college. I always look forward to seeing Annie and Molly because they are closer to my age. I feel like that I can't really relate to my cousins on my dad's side very well.

"So Kathryn, you must be in 7th grade now right?" Uncle Sam asked me.

I nodded. "Yeah. I'll be going into 8th grade next fall."

"They grow up so fast." Aunt Robin looked at Mom. Her eyes getting misty.

Mom looked at my uncle pointedly. "If only your brother could see how his children are growing to such wonderf**u**l young adults. He would be so proud of them. "I'm proud of them every day."

Uncle Sam got up from his seat at the head of the table, walked around to where Mom was sitting and gave her a squeeze.

"Jen, I have no doubt in my mind that where ever Willie is right now he's proud of these kids and how well you've raised them. "

I looked at my uncle hopefully " Have you heard from Daddy at all Uncle Sam?"

Uncle Sam walked over to me and kissed me on the cheek. "No sweetie pie, still no word from him yet. Hopefully we hear from him soon. It would be nice to know what's he's been up to all these years and where he's been living."

I sighed; I sometimes wondered if it was even possible that my dad was even still alive. It was hard to stay positive about this but I tried to keep Annie's advice in the back of my mind.

A couple of days before Christmas we left for New York. We would be staying with Aunt Grace and Uncle Oliver til the day after Christmas and then be going to Boston to spend time with Uncle Alex, Aunt Melissa and Christopher. I was bursting with excitement to meet Frederick and Joanne.

Drake met us at the door as he always did…. Annie was right behind him.

"Katie! Drake will take your bags upstairs for you. I want to show you guys the nursery."

"Okay, won't we wake up the babies though?"

"We won't as long as we're incredibly quiet."

I nodded. "Okay. Let's go."

We followed Annie upstairs to the nursuery. It was decorated in a zoo animal theme.

"I like the wallpaper Did you guys pick that out?."

Annie nodded. "Yup, we wanted to pick a wallpaper that both a boy and a girl would like and we settled on this."

I walked over to the bassinet and looked inside. My breath hitched in my throat.

"Oh my gosh, Annie. He's so little."

"That's Joanne actually. Frederick is in the bassinet over there. But yeah they're both really little and so cute."

I kissed Joanne on the top of the forehead.

Aunt Grace smiled at us from the doorway.

"Time for lunch kids."

"Okay Mom." Annie said.

At lunch Aunt Grace looked at me.

"Kathryn your mom and I want you to consider something really important."

I looked at her excitedly. "Really! What is it?"

"I was wondering if you would be godmother to one of the twins?

"Well who would be the godmother to the other baby?"

"Your Uncle Oliver has already talked to his brother Gene and Bella and Eli are going to be Frederick's godparents."

"So I'm going to be Joanne's godmother then?"

Aunt Grace smiled. " Yes, that's correct."

I looked at my brother. "So is Jake going to be the godfather to Joanne?"

"We're considering either Jacob or Toni Bennett's son Larry to be the godfather."

Jake smiled at Aunt Grace and Uncle Oliver broadly. "It's something I would consider. I mean if Bella and Eli get to be godparents it only makes sense that me and Katie get to share the duty too but if Larry wants to be godfather that's fine with me too."

Uncle Oliver smiled and patted Jake on the back. "That's the spirit my boy!"

Uncle Oliver then turned to me. "What do you think of this offer Kathryn Grace?"

I smiled and then threw my arms around my uncle. "Thank you Uncle Oliver and Aunt Grace this is so great!"

Aunt Grace got up from her seat at the table and joined Uncle Oliver in giving me a strong hug.

"We love you Kathryn! You've always been our most special niece we could think of a more fitting person to be Joanne's godmother." Aunt Grace kissed me on the forehead.

"I love you too Aunt Grace… so very much. " I whispered.

This was just about the best Christmas gift I had ever gotten. Better than anything Santa Claus could ever give to me. Now if only I could find out what the heck happened to my dad. Then my life would be 100% complete.


	7. The Ski Vacation

**The Ski Vacation**

**My Cousin Annie Chapter 6**

Aunt Grace just called. Uncle Oliver booked a ski vacation for a full week in Lake Placid for our whole family. Jake and I have never been skiing before so I am very excited. I also can't wait to see Isabella and Margaret again.. it's been too long since I last saw them.

We arrived in New York a few days before we were supposed to leave for the ski vacation we don't get to see our cousins enough so a little extra time with them never hurt!

Aunt Grace and Annie met us at the train station. Annie's grin was a mile wide as always.

"Katie! Jake! We're going to have such a fun ski vacation in Lake Placid!" Annie said

I slung my arm around her shoulder. "I know. It's going to be a blast. We can't wait to see everyone again."

We were doing a gift exchange between all the cousins for Christmas. One of my main reasons for getting to New York earl y was so that I could buy my Christmas present. I was buying something for Isabella. I had no idea what to buy for her though so I decided to ask Annie for some advice.

"Bella really likes watching hockey on TV and goes to her school's hockey games whenever possible."

"Which team does she like?"

"The New York Islanders. You should buy her a shirt that has her favorite player's name on the back. She'd like that!"

"Okay. We'lll have to go to the sports store and pick something out. "

Early in the morning on December 19th we gathered into two cars to dive to the ski resort. I was blown away by how big the hotel was. It was almost as big as Aunt Grace and Uncle Oliver's mansion. I couldn't wait to get on the ski slopes! Uncle Oliver promised to teach Molly Jacob and I how to ski, I learned pretty fast and helped the others where they were having trouble.

Annie and I always stayed up til 2:30 in the morning talking.

"Katie, are you ever going to move closer to us?" Annie asked.

I shrugged. " I don't know. I really would like to. I am hoping Mom can find a job in Boston. I know she is looking for one and Aunt Melissa and Uncle Alex said they'd help her find an apartment in Cambridge."

Annie squeezed my hand tightly under the covers. "You're my favorite cousin and very best friend Katie. We've grown so close to each other over the past couple years. I really hope you guys move close to us. We don't get to see you guys enough. If you moved to Boston, we'd get to see you a whole lot more."

I squeezed her hand back. "I know Annie. Hopefully in the next year or so we'll move to Boston. When I start to look at colleges I'll be looking at colleges in that area."

I felt Annie pull me in a warm embrace. "I love you Katie."

"I love you too Annie. " I snuggled into her chest and she kissed me softly on the forehead. I fell asleep in her arms.

The week flew by so quickly. Finally it was Christmas eve! The gift exchange was upon us. Isabella ended up having me for the gift exchange and she made me a a ceramic door decoration for my bedroom door that says Katie's Room. I smiled. I was so glad that I had grown just as close to Isabella and Margaret and I had to Annie and Molly. I hoped that as they years continued to pass we'd only grow closer.


	8. Back In The Picture

**Bam! Back In The Picture**

**My Cousin Annie Chapter 6**

**Diary Format**

**Spoiler Alert! ** Chapter 3 of my current collab with Mandalicios ** New Beginnings** from Kathryn's perspective Neither of us own any Annie character. Jen Farrell and her children are Mandalicious's original characters.

April 15,1941

Dear Diary,

Today we got some news that will rock the very core of our family foundation. My Uncle Sam called my mom and told her that my father **FINALLY** decided to show his face. Why he wouldn't come back into our lives sooner I'll never know. I am still trying to process everything. He hasn't even been in touch with us at all or sent my mom a cent of child support money. All the more reason why I look up to my mom for how well she has raised Jake and me. She's my hero and one of my very best friends. I love her so much! He's going to be coming to Connecticut for Thanksgiving. I have a feeling that's going to be awkward and uncomfortable and that will be some harsh words exchanged… especially between him and my mom. I wish he'd been more present in our lives for the milestones, like me getting my license or Jacob going to middle school. It's been so hard for both of us that he's been gone all these years. It's almost like he doesn't love us. My mom disagrees with my thought process that he doesn't love us… she argued that he loves us very much. If that was true then why would have abandoned us to begin with and left the three of us alone and my mom to raise us by herself? Mom didn't seem to have an answer for that one. I guess this is what Annie meant on the phone last year when she said that Dad my show up in the most mysterious of places. The timing of this is so weird. I can't wait to see what will happen when we see Daddy again.

Love

Katie


	9. Thanksgiving From Hell

**Thanksgiving from Hell**

**My Cousin Annie Chapter 8 **

**Diary Format**

**Spoiler Alert! ** Chapter 5 of **New Beginnings** from Kathryn's perspective.

November 25th 1942

9:40pm

Dear Diary,

I really wish we had gone to Aunt Grace and Uncle Oliver's for Thanksgiving this year… **but no!** That's what we were supposed to do but we went to Uncle Sam and Aunt Robin's in Connecticut instead.. all because Daddy wanted to see us. The feeling out of place with my older cousins isn't so bad anymore since I'm relatively closer to their age. Kyle is 18, just two years older than me and a freshmen at Penn State, Samantha is 19 and a sophomore at UNC Asheville and Rachel is 21 and a junior at UMASS Boston. They've actually given me really good insight about colleges and what to look for in colleges to apply at which is helpful as I start my search. What made It unbearable this year is that my dad was there. I didn't even want to see him so I would have gladly went to Aunt Grace and Uncle Oliver's alone so I could have been with Annie and Molly. Ever since we found out he's back In our lives I've been anxious and angry. Now that I've seen him the anxiety is gone.. but my anger and hatred toward him has grown stronger. He told us he left us because he felt he was an unfit father. If he felt he was an unfit father why didn't he just leave before Jake was born? It would have been better off for him. He then had the nerve to suggest that me and Jake move to live with him in Florida once he gets settled in a couple months. Mom and I were both appalled that he'd suggest something like that especially since we just moved to Boston almost a year ago for the sole purpose of living closer to our family. I don't want to pack up and move again and I 'm 100% positive that Jake doesn't want to move either. His rationale is that Mom has spent enough time with us and now It's our turn to live with him for awhile. My mom flipped out at him and started swearing. The bastard deserved every last bit of hearing what she was saying! Who does he think he is waltzing back into our lives after being gone for 11 years? **Not a cent of child support money … not once. Not even a letter or a phone call… until now!** I'm just as angry at him as my mom is. Jake is clueless because he was just a baby when Daddy left us but I was 5 years old by that time. I was his little princess. He would have done anything for me. ..until he left us. I guess it's time to let the bitterness go but there is so much pain deep in my heart. I don't have the same kind of love I have for him that I have for my mom and I am not sure if I will be able to love him the same way. I still don't think he loves me either though my mom constantly tries to make me think differently. We're going to New York for the weekend. I can't wait to tell Annie about this. I hope Daddy doesn't try to track us down in Boston. I don't think I can deal with seeing him again.

Love Katie


End file.
